The Leoš Janáček Memorial in Hukvaldy
You know how with all my soul I cling to these cottages of ours, these forests, to Hukvaldy lock, stock and barrel!
Hukvaldy. Janáček’s native village which he left aged 11 but which he never forgot.
Visit the places where he spent his summers, absorbed new ideas and composed.
Janáček’s house will transport you back in time, give you a feel for the way of life of the period and show how Hukvaldy and its surroundings were inscribed into his oeuvre.
Opening hours
From April to October, the Memorial is open every day except Monday. From November to March it is open by appointment (please phone)
| April | 10 – 16:30 |
| May | 10 – 17 |
| June, July, August | 10 – 18 |
| September | 10 – 17 |
| October | 10 – 16:30 |
Admission fees
Adults 80 Kč
Children, students, senior citizens, disability card holders 50 Kč
Family ticket 180 Kč.
Beskydy Card – sale 20 %
Memorial Manager
Mgr. David Jurečka
Phone: +420 774 680 049
E-mail: Janackuv.pamatnik@gmail.com
Visit the Hukvaldy Memorial from anywhere
Exhibitions
The historic parts of the memorial
The reception room, bedroom and kitchen as they were when Janáček lived in the house. When will you pay a visit to the famous composer?
Educational exhibition Janáček and Hukvaldy
Discover what tied Janáček with Hukvaldy and how this bond is reflected in his oeuvre. Listen to Janáček’s music – do you hear echoes of the Lachia region?
The exhibition features photographs from Janáček’s life, letters, notes, musical scores and costume designs for the Cunning Little Vixen. They will transport you back to Janáček’s era; these artefacts do not age, making time stand still.
Outside the windows, the Beskydy mountain range of the 21st century dominates the skyline; inside, we are at the beginning of the previous century. Do you feel the tension?
History of the Memorial
Three months after the celebrated performance of Její pastorkyňa at Prague’s National Theatre, Hukvaldy made Janáček an honorary citizen. In his thank-you note to the local council, the composer confessed:
„You know how with all my soul I cling to these cottages of ours, these forests, to Hukvaldy lock, stock and barrel!“
This was no mere polite phrase – Janáček regularly returned to Hukvaldy and spent contented days with the Sládek family during summer holidays, and sometimes also visited the village at Christmas and in spring.
His brother, František, bought a house in the village’s Velká Strana (now called Podoboří) in 1905, first built in 1790 by Jiří Strnadel. Three years after the purchase, František died and in late 1921 his wife Máša sold the property to Leoš and moved away to be with her Polish relatives.
Janáček was very proud of his ‘Yeoman’s Manor’, although the building, over a century old, did cause him trouble occasionally: the roof needed repairing and the cellars had to be dried out. In January 1928, he arranged for electricity to be brought into the house and three months later work started on the construction of an extra room upstairs, which was due to be ready in summer for a distinguished visitor, Mrs Kamila Stösslová, with whom Janáček spent the last days of his life in the Hukvaldy house in early August.
In his last will and testament, Leoš Janáček left the house, a tract of forest, a field and the garden to the Hukvaldy municipality, adding 20,000 Kč for maintenance. His wife Zdenka was granted a lifetime right of use, and his sister Josefa was provided with a room. Should no-one else in the family be interested in living in the house after Zdenka’s and Josefa’s deaths, Janáček stipulated that the room should be given to an unmarried teacher who’d care for the house – the two main rooms should be left unchanged. Zdenka Janáčková opened the house to the public in 1933. Initially it was only open for major events or by appointment. During the war until 1945 the family of a police constable lived there, and from 1948 the family of the teacher Petr Eliáš.
From 1962, the house was owned by the Czech Music Fund, a Prague non-governmental organisation, which had the essential repairs done and, in collaboration with Brno Janáček experts, established a permanent exhibition in the upper room documenting Janáček’s relationship with his native region.
In 1994, the Czech Music Fund transferred the Hukvaldy Memorial to our custodianship – the Leoš Janáček Foundation. We had the house restored as far as possible to the state as Leoš Janáček left it in 1928. We also created the exhibition Janáček and Hukvaldy.
Today the memorial is open to everyone interested in Janáček’s life and works. Do come visit!
Have a few moments? Download the app ‘Hukvaldy – in Leoš Janáček’s footsteps’ | in English
On your smartphone, click one of the links below and download our app. Et voilà – you can follow in Janáček’s footsteps on your own device!
